A courteous, intelligent and informed discussion about religion

[amateur51]

If we can discussion religion on Platform 3 like this why do we need another place for it? I wish now I'd voted against it.

[Flay]

I probably have now shot meself in the foot.

I hope it didn't hurt too much, Anna! Do you want a doctor?

People can believe (or not believe) what they want. But they should keep it to themselves unless invited to share their views.

It is the fanatic evangelists who cause the problems, whether Christian, Jewish, Islamic, atheistic, vegetarian or whatever.

Kindness and compassion is all we need.

[salymap]

It all boils down to the fact that no-one can really prove anything, however much they believe. If it gets them through life, which can be very hard for some people, What harm can it do?

Treating other people as you wish to be treated says it nearly all to me.

[scottycelt]

a) There is a God
b) There is no God.

Both these statements are dogmatic. Neither can (as yet) be satisfactorily proved conclusively beyond any shadow of doubt. One of them must be right and we use the reason that, er, God, or no God, gave us to try and determine the correct answer for ourselves.

On the old forum Stevo (oh how I miss you, Stevo!) used to argue that it was not incumbent on anyone in a debate to prove a 'negative'. In other words, why should he/she have to prove the non-existence of a God any more than fairies? That, of course, however plausible-sounding, is a total and convenient 'cop out'!

If a person is prepared to believe and accept the dogmatism of statement b), that person must surely be prepared to provide some evidence that he/she would always demand of the believer of statement a). If I said definitively that there is no life on Mars or anywhere else in the universe, most people (including many atheistic scientists) might well be asking for some hard evidence to back up my 'negative' dogmatism, and rightly so!

It works (or, at least, should work) both ways for any sort of intelligent and informed discussion about religion ...

[Anna]

I hope it didn't hurt too much, Anna! Do you want a doctor?

Nah, Couple of Hail Marys and a Novena should see me good to go!!

[eighthobstruction]

#19 scotty, surely there must be something in this post that A51 can take exception to....

[Flay]

Nah, Couple of Hail Marys and a Novena should see me good to go!!

I'll light a votive candle for you.

My lapsed Catholicism still lurks. Funny really being lapsed. If at a formal meal where grace is said, I would bow my head and murmur Amen with the rest - I would even say the grace if called upon (perhaps the Selkirk version with an english accent). Hypocrisy perhaps, but: you never know, cover the options. I'm quite agnostic now but I'll be quite happy with a church funeral (providing I can choose the music). Perhaps even a Catholic church (a friend's funeral recently in the local Catholic church was really quite uplifting, a celebration of a life and I thought wonderfully optimistic, to my amazement)

[french frank]

I'm surprised you actually said that f-f - but then nothing surprises me on this forum really - especially when it comes to musical judgement.

I'm not sure why, though I may have expressed myself unclearly: I was referring to the kind of 'religious wars' that are waged on internet forums like the BBC's Religion and Ethics board.

From Simon:

I don't know what religions you've been discussing, but that certainly isn't the case with mine! If it were I wouldn't give it tuppence.

There's only one person that I ever discuss religion with, and by profession he's a Christian theologian. He would probably understand the point I was trying (perhaps inadequately) to make even though it comes from the 'opposite camp'. You would obviously not view things in the same way as I do because you start from the opposite position.

Did you notice that Ariosto picked up on one point in that post and you picked up on another? It seems I'm critiquable from both sides' point of view!

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

having been, and still alas going, to too many funerals these past few years i find no objections to the religious rituals, they are helpful to all it often seems ... this highlights the linguistic and ritual poverty of the secularism i would mostly adhere to .... i find it helps to substitute the term humanity for any reference to assorted deities and spirits etc as i listen to the priests and shamans .... the power of 'communion' to establish community is indeed awesome ....

[Serial_Apologist]

Did you notice that Ariosto picked up on one point in that post and you picked up on another? It seems I'm critiquable from both sides' point of view!

In the Buddhism that I understand as Buddhism, uncertainty is intrinsic to existence, and is taken on board as intrinsic to one's spiritual journey.

[french frank]

In the Buddhism that I understand as Buddhism, uncertainty is intrinsic to existence, and is taken on board as intrinsic to one's spiritual journey.

Well, there are no fewer than four Buddhist centres within 15 minutes' walk of where I live (including 'The Old Vicarage'). And I have a Buddhist monk and nun as near neighbours. Maybe I'd better join the stream of people who become Buddhists for 'stress management'.

[Bryn]

As was said on R4 today....[Historically] Jesus probably thought the world was flat....

What fool claimed that on Radio 4 today. The broadly spherical view of the Earth's shape was already establish in Greece some 6 centuries before the Jesus character was born (whether as a result of angelic insemination or not).

http://www.bede.org.uk/flatearth.htm

[french frank]

a) There is a God
b) There is no God.

Both these statements are dogmatic. Neither can (as yet) be satisfactorily proved conclusively beyond any shadow of doubt. One of them must be right

A third possibility is that there is 'something' which neither side could possibly conceive, which doesn't satisfy the needs of the religious believer, but which non-believers would have to grudgingly accept was the equivalent of '42'

[french frank]

I hope people will respect those who are trying to carry out an on-topic discussion. Recent posts have been moved to DIVERSIONS

[eighthobstruction]

What happened there?? I now seem to be, NOT on a thread i was on/On a thread I was not on....

Far as I could see I was on a weekend type light-hearted thread [schools out]....joshing in the mosh-pit....but now I'm..... ....Oh well